BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- The Palestinian Ministry of Health has ordered a series of personnel transfers in Beit Jala Hospital and the Bethlehem Health Directorate, following the death of two hospital patients and accusations of malpractice over the past month.

Ministry of Health Spokesman Osama al-Najjar said in press statement on Sunday that the transfers were made as a result of the recommendations from a technical committee formed to investigate the conditions in Beit Jala Hospital following the accusations.

Al-Najjar added that the decisions concerned all aspects of the hospital including its administrative, medical, and technical operations, and also took into consideration shortages of personnel and medical equipment.

Notably, Ghada Kawwa was appointed as the director of Beit Jala Hospital to replace Ziyad Shaqir, making her the first female doctor to take charge of a Ministry of Health hospital.

Kawwa previously served as the head of Health Affairs at the Ministry of Health Directorate in Bethlehem, and had been employed there since 1990. Shaqir now fills her former position.

The technical committee was formed after two patients of Beit Jala Hospital died this month, sparking accusations of malpractice and medical negligence.

After 44-year-old Faida al-Atrash died in the hospital of kidney failure while undergoing a dialysis treatment on Oct. 10, her family demanded an investigation into what they argued was a case of medical negligence, and accused Shaqir of lying about the circumstances of her death.

Faida’s father, Muhammad al-Atrash, said at the time that his family held three members of the hospital’s staff responsible for his daughter’s death, without elaborating on their positions or how they were involved.

Separately, after undergoing stomach surgery at Beit Jala Hospital, Ali Taqatqa was taken to al-Mizan hospital in Hebron, and then to Israel's Hadassah Medical Center where he was pronounced dead on Oct. 11, according to Palestinian news site al-Quds Network.

The report said that a medical report from Hadassah confirmed that the cause of death was severe bleeding as a result of the surgery.

According to spokesman al-Najjar, the personnel changes were as follows: